Mo Farah (GBR) defended both his 5000m and 10,000m Olympic titles from London four years ago, winning over both distances in emphatic fashion over the last lap, and was Europe’s fastest man over 1500m, 3000m, 5000m, 10,000m and half marathon.

Gianmarco Tamberi (ITA) won the high jump title at the world indoor championships and then the European Athletics Championships before clearing a national record and European-leading 2.39m to win at the Diamond League meeting in Monaco.

Thomas Röhler (GER) only finished fifth at the European Athletics Championships but threw 90.30m in Rio to lift the Olympic javelin title. He was also the world’s leading javelin thrower this summer with a personal best of 91.28m, the only man to throw over 90 metres in the world this year.

Ruth Beitia (ESP) the popular 37-year-old Spaniard took silver at the world indoor championships before defending her European title and then finally won a global gold medal in Rio, clearing 1.97m to become the oldest winner of an Olympic high jump title.

Ekaterini Stefanidi (GRE) won the pole vault in Rio with 4.85m to add to her European title, the first Greek woman to win an Olympic field event gold medal, and she was also a regular winner on the international circuit and took the Diamond Race in her event.

Anita Wlodarczyk (POL) had an unbeaten and spectacular season, winning the European title and then throwing a world record of 82.29m to win the gold medal in Rio, which she then improved to 82.98m later in August.

Max Hess (GER) still only 19 at the time of his triumphs, he took the triple jump silver medal at the world indoor championships and then won the European title with a personal best and European-leading mark of 17.20m.

Matthew Hudson-Smith (GBR) at just the age of 21, he made the final of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games 400m after running 44.48 in his semi, the fastest European U23 time for 24 years and the fastest European senior time since 2012.

Karsten Warholm (NOR) still getting to grips with his new event, the former world youth octathlon champion ran a 400m hurdles national record of 48.49 at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the fastest time in the world by an U23 athlete.

Dina Asher-Smith (GBR) the 20-year-old won the European 200m title before going on to finish fifth in the longer sprint at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games in 22.31, and no one younger in the world ran faster than her over this distance in 2016.

Sara Kolak (CRO) got the bronze medal at the European Athletics Championships but then the 21-year-old became one of the most unexpected winners of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games when she threw a national record of 66.18m to get the gold medal.

Nafissatou Thiam (BEL) was a worthy winner of the heptathlon in Rio with a national record of 6810 points, just six days before her 22nd birthday, and she set personal bests in five of her seven events to add more than 300 points to her overall best.

The winning athletes are decided by counting votes from the fans, media, European Athletics Member Federations as well as an expert European Athletics panel, with the results from each group of voters counting for one quarter of the athlete's final score.

On the same evening of the Golden Tracks, European Athletics will also recognise the winners of the Coaching and Innovation Awards.